Making the right choices
Integrity Policy

For more information, please call the
Integrity Cluster of the Royal Netherlands
Marechaussee.

Royal Netherlands Marechaussee Staff
Attn. Integrity Cluster
‘Koningin Beatrix’ Barracks
Van Alkemadelaan 85
2509 LP The Hague
Netherlands
Tel. no.: +31 (0) 70-4414617

The importance
of integrity
for the Royal
Netherlands

Incidents are lessons
Integrity incidents, or breaches of integrity, will continue to occur in the future. Although
it is a good thing that incidents are reported, dealt with, their severity assessed,
a possible disciplinary or criminal investigation carried out and possibly a penalty
imposed, it is imperative that as much as possible is learned from each incident that
occurs. To do that, questions need to be asked. Why did the incident in question take
place? Did we miss any clues to what was about to happen? What was the role of
members of personnel and their managers? Must we put any measures in place to
prevent such incidents reoccurring in the future?

Marechaussee

This is the reason that, in addition to enforcement (dealing with breaches of
integrity), protection and stimulation are important pillars of the Royal Netherlands
Marechaussee’s integrity strategy.

Trust in government

Royal Netherlands Marechaussee
Integrity Management Model

is a prerequisite for
democracy. The general

Protection

Stimulation

Basis values and
regulations

Role Model

Checks

Risk management

Improving moral
judgement

Approach and hold to
account

Preventive measures

Learning from
incidents

Penalty

Achterzijde

Enforcement

public must be able
to expect that the
Royal Netherlands
Marechaussee carries out
its tasks in a professional
way, and with integrity.

Managing integrity

Voorzijde

Enforcement, protection and stimulation are
the three pillars of the Royal Netherlands
Marechaussee’s (RNLM) integrity
management model. In addition to the
enforcement and stimulation of integrity,
RNLM personnel must be protected
against all forms of integrity violations in
accordance with the RNLM’s integrity policy.

In this model, integrity is not only the
responsibility of each individual member of
personnel, but also a primary management
responsibility.
The organisation can be said to possess
integrity when it acts fairly towards the
people and organisations it either works
with or works for.

An organisation with integrity bases itself on
two main principles:
• A rigorous enforcement practice aimed at
prevention (protection)
• An active drive towards a continuous moral
learning process (moral competence)
An organisation with integrity protects
• the organisation against members of
personnel with ill intentions;
• members of personnel against
temptations;
• members of personnel against false
accusations.

Seven Steps Plan
You are in a mission area to

Procedure for making moral judgements:

train the local police force.

1.		What is the moral decision or choice
that I have to make?
2. Who are the parties involved?
3. Who is making the decision?
4. Do I need more information?
5. What are the arguments?

You are in regular contact

6. What conclusion have I reached?

with the local authorities.

7. I assess whether I feel right or wrong
about the judgement I reached.
Source: Henk van Luijk

Within the framework of
cooperation between the local
authorities and the mission
you are part of, you coordinate

After 10 days, the local

You have arrested a number of

police officers suddenly

local people. You hand them

stop attending your training

over to the local authorities,

course. After asking around,

but see immediately that local

you find out that a local tribe

policemen are getting ready to

elder thinks that the police

hit the prisoners with a stick.

officers have received enough

What do you do?

training and has sent them out
to work. What do you do?
A colleague is keeping an

most of your activities with
A good colleague of yours

the local mayor. Now an NGO

takes you into confidence and

has approached you with

tells you that he is struggling

complaints of corruption

with his sexual orientation.

about this man. What do you

You are both members of a

do?

tight-knit team that has been

enthusiastic weblog of the
During a visit to a small

mission he is part of. In it,

village, a man approaches

he gives a very detailed

you holding a child suffering

description of the mission and

serious burns. The medical

your operational activities.

equipment you have with you

What do you do?

is not adequate. Do you take

through a lot together during
the past year. The members

A local police commander

of the team can talk about

releases a suspect, despite

almost everything except

the evidence that his police

homosexuality. Your colleague

officers collected against him

is having difficulties with the

in collaboration with your unit.

situation. What do you do?

You later hear that the suspect
is the police commander’s
nephew. What do you do?

the child to the compound?

The Seven Steps Plan explained
1. What are the contrasting choices in a
certain situation? I make a provisional
choice which I think is the morally correct
one. I assess the most important objection
against my provisional choice.
2. The parties involved are central to the
situation. It must be clear whose rights,
interests and wishes have to be taken into
account.
3. The answer to this question should always
be ‘I am’. This makes it clear that the
individual is responsible and accountable
for the decision that he or she makes.
4. Making a morally responsible decision
demands that the facts and circumstances
vital to a certain situation are known.
5. Collect together all of the arguments that

can be expected to play a role in the moral
assessment. The two sets of arguments
related to the two contrasting choices
deserve to be given equal attention.
6. The rule of thumb is that arguments
based on principles carry more weight
than arguments based on consequences,
because principle-based arguments refer
to the rights of the parties involved, while
consequence-based arguments refer
to the interests or wishes of the parties
involved.
7. How do I feel after making this choice?
Do I feel doubtful? That could mean that
I overlooked or incorrectly assessed a
number of arguments. In that case, I must
return to steps 5 and 6.